Many recreational sports, such as snowboarding, for example, involve riding a board through or atop of a medium such as air, snow or water. A rider stands on one surface (the rider support surface) of an elongated snowboard with his or her feet spaced apart from one another and oriented at an angle with respect to the longitudinal axis of the snowboard. The rider rides the board down snow covered inclined slopes with one foot in front of the other in a manner similar to that of surfing. Depending on whether the rider puts their right foot forward or their left foot forward, the rider's stance defines one edge of the snowboard to be the “heel side” (i.e. the edge of the board closest to the rider's heels) and one edge of the snowboard to be the “toe side” (i.e. the edge of the board closest to the rider's toes).
Snowboards typically incorporate bindings which increase the rider's control over the board. Bindings retain the rider's feet on the rider support surface of the board, such that the rider's feet do not move significantly relative to the board. There are many types of snowboard bindings in use today. The most common type of binding, referred to as a “high back” binding, incorporates a back member which projects from a binding base plate on the rider support surface, such that the rider may lean backward to apply pressure to the heel side of the board, and one or more straps which extend over top of the foot and bind the foot to the binding base plate, such that the rider may lean forward to apply pressure to the toe side of the board. Another common type of binding, referred to as the “step-in” binding, requires that the rider wear a hard shell boot which is secured to the binding base plate, such that the rider can apply pressure to the heel and toe sides of the snowboard. Step-in bindings use a variety of techniques for securing the hard shell boot to the binding base plate.
For different events, different types of snowboarding and/or different snowboarding conditions, it is desirable for a rider to be able to adjust his or her stance (i.e. the position and orientation of his or her feet relative to the support surface of the board). For example, during speed runs, such as giant slalom, a rider may prefer to have both of his or her feet oriented at small angles relative to the longitudinal axis of the board, whereas for free snowboarding, a rider may prefer to have one or both of his or her feet oriented at an angle that is large relative to the longitudinal axis of the board. As another example, when the snowboarding conditions are such that the snow is deep or heavy, a rider may want to have their feet relatively close to the back of the board, whereas, when the snowboarding conditions are such that the snow is less deep or less heavy, a rider may want to position their feet closer to the front of the snowboard. It is also desirable for snowboard rental shops, snowboard equipment retailers or the like to be able to adjust the bindings of a particular snowboard and binding system to accommodate the stance of different riders.
Adjustment of the stance of a rider typically involves adjustment of the angular orientation of a rider's foot (or feet) relative to the longitudinal axis of the snowboard and/or adjustment of the position of a rider's foot (or feet) along the longitudinal axis of the snowboard. Since the rider's feet are fixed to the board by bindings, adjustment of a rider's stance typically involves adjusting the angular orientation of the binding(s) relative to the longitudinal axis of the snowboard and/or adjustment of the position of the binding(s) along the longitudinal axis of the snowboard.
In typical snowboards, adjustment of the orientation and position of the bindings relative to the longitudinal axis of the snowboard is facilitated by binding mounting systems. Binding mounting systems are used to couple the bindings to the snowboard. The most common binding mounting systems in use today make use of a plurality of spaced apart threaded holes which extend from the rider support surface into the board. A plurality (e.g. three or four) retaining bolts project through a binding retaining disc (used to hold down the binding base plate) and into a set of the threaded holes to secure the binding to the board.
These binding mounting systems have the drawback that adjustment of the longitudinal position of the binding(s) is limited to a small number of discrete positions. Typically, each binding may only be located at about 3 or 4 longitudinal positions (i.e. corresponding to the discrete positions of the sets of threaded holes). Another drawback with this type of binding mounting system is that adjustment of the longitudinal position requires that the retaining bolts be completely removed from their current set of threaded holes and inserted into a new set of threaded holes. The complete removal and reinsertion of the bolts into a new set of threaded holes may be difficult, especially as a field operation, where the bolts may be lost in the snow and the new set of threaded holes may be filled with snow.
Various embodiments of a binding mounting system have been proposed by Carlson in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,015,161 and 6,189,899 and in published Unites States Patent application No. 2001/0038182. The Carlson binding mounting system incorporates a specialized board having front and back channels which extend longitudinally along the centerline of the board. Front and back bindings are respectively mounted to the front and back channels. Each binding has a base plate and a disc. The disc has a centerline and a bottom surface that is rotatably coupled to the binding base plate. A rail is disposed within and fixedly coupled to the channel. The rail is made of flexible material and comprises two series of parallel notches. Corresponding notches on the centerline of the bottom of the disc engage the rail. A locking mechanism couples the disc to the binding and the binding to the board.
Because the rail of the Carlson binding mounting system is flexible, it is correspondingly weak. Under the high stresses and forces applied by riders, the Carlson binding mounting system may deform to permit movement of the binding relative to the snowboard. In addition, the locking mechanisms proposed by Carlson do not have the coupling strength associated with conventional threaded fasteners. Accordingly, the relatively large forces and high torques imparted by a rider's feet during snowboarding may cause the locking mechanism to slip, break, unlock or loosen over time and may cause corresponding movement of the binding with respect to the snowboard. Another drawback with the Carlson binding mounting system is that it does not permit the longitudinal position and angular orientation of the bindings to be separately and independently adjusted.
A snowboard binding mounting system proposed by Quattro et al. in published United States Patent Application No. 2003/0116931 comprises a specialized board having front and rear pairs of parallel, longitudinally extending channels formed in the snowboard. Each pair of channels corresponds to one of the front and rear bindings. The upper surface of each channel comprises a channel element having transversely extending teeth that face downwardly into the channel. Each channel accepts a channel insert having an elongated element that extends between a pair of round elements. Each round element of each channel insert incorporates transversely extending teeth on its upper surface (for engaging corresponding teeth of the channel element) and a threaded hole. Bolts extend through slots in a binding retaining disc and are coupled to the threaded holes of the channel inserts. When the bolts are tightened, the transversely extending teeth of the channel insert engage the corresponding teeth of the channel element and the binding retaining disc engages a binding base plate.
The Quattro binding mounting system requires a pair of channels for each binding, which significantly reduces the structural integrity of the snowboard, especially when the channels are widened to accommodate the transversely extending ridges on the channel element and the channel insert. In addition, the Quattro binding mounting system does not permit the longitudinal position and angular orientation of the bindings to be separately and independently adjusted.
There is a general desire for binding mounting systems which facilitate adjustment of a rider's stance and which ameliorate at least some of the aforementioned or other disadvantages with the prior art systems.